Shoe and the like and method of making the same



Feb. 1 7,. 1925. 1,526,555

F. LUPPINO SHOE AND THE LIKE AND METHOD OF MAKING THE SAME Filed Sept. 18, 1923 ,4 fro/mania name Feb. 1 1925.

omen STATES PATENT OFFICE.

LUPPI INO, 0] WATKINS, NEW YORK.

BED! AND THE LIKE AND METHOD OF MAKING m BAKE- Applioatlon filed September 18, 1983. Serial No. 688,877.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FRANK LUPPINO, a citizen of the United States, residing at Watkins, in the county of Schuyler and State of New York, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Shoes and the like and Methods of Making the Same, of which the following is a speclfication.

This invention relates to a method of makin shoes and the like which may be utiliz by workers unskilled in the shoe making art as ordinarily practiced, or by persons in homes who wish to make shoes, slippers or the like in an easy and inexpensive manner, without the use of special tools or machinery.

One of the objects of this invention is to provide a method whereby it is utilize pieces or scra of so leather, cloth, is t or other sultable; material in a manner whereby shoes or slippers of attractive and neat appearance, giving comfort in use, may be readily and quickly produced in an inexpensive manner, as occasion requires without the necessity of purchasing such articles ready made and without special and expensive machinery or tools.

Another object of the invention is to provide a method whereby the up rs of shoes or slippers and the like may accurately formed from two similarly shaped blanks, forming respectively the finished side and lining of the upper, which are cut to any required size, preferably from sheets or pieces of waste leather, cloth, felt or the like, or from cloth and leather, by providing1 a pattern or template adapted to be lai on the selected material so that an outline may be marked thereon.

Another object of the invention is to connect such inner and outer upper members by a concealed seam around the ankle opening, which will also provide a neat and-comfortable ankle fit.

Still another object is to connect an up er so formed by a similar seam to a cloth, elt or other sole, such, for example, as the ordinary slipper sole now on the market, or a sole cut from a piece of waste soft leather or cloth, or the upper may be placed over an ordinary last and lasted or stitched to a leather or other relatively stiff sole.-

Another object is to utilize relatively small pieces of waste leather, cloth or the like to form the blanks from which the uppers are ossible to prepared, thereby reducing the first cost of the material to a minimum.

Another ob'ect of the invention is to improve and simplify the manufacture of shoes or slippers of the character mentioned in the other respects hereinafter specified and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings:

Fig. 1 is a plan view of a pattern or template adapted to be used to outline the form of the blanks, in accordance with the method embodied in this invention.

Fig. 2 is a plan view, partly broken away,

showin two pieces of material, cut to shape from t e pattern, and stitched together around the ankle opening, as a step 1n the making of an up er.

Fig. 3 is a simi ar figure showing the next step in making an upper and illustrates the method of turning the blanks, after stitching, to form the concealed stitch seam around the ankle opening.

Figs. 4 and 5 are transverse sections, on lines 4-4 and 5-5, respectively, Figs. 2 and 3.

Fig. 6 is a transverse section showing the connected blanks, secured as in Fig. 3, plfced over a last and stitched to a flexible so e.

Fig. 7 is a similar view of the upper and sole shown in Fig. 6, after havmg been turned to expose the finished side of the upper and form the concealed seam between the upper and sole.

Fig. 8 is a transverse section of the upper as secured to a stiff sole.

Figs. 9 and 10 are respectively a frag mentary side elevation and a horizontal section of a shoe, the upper of which is formed of relatively small pieces of material.

Inthe practical application of the method contemplated by the present invention, a

attern or template is provided which is ormed-of suitable material, such as fiber board or the like. This pattern is formed so that its outer edge corresponds in shape to that of the blank required, while an aperture is formed in the body of the pattern of a size and shape to correspond with an ankle opening of a shoe or slipper. One pattern may be provided for each of the usual standard shoe sizes, and by reversing the pattern a right hand and a ieft hand outline may be made on suitable pieces of material by marking around the edge of the pattern and lining, or two like or differentpieces of cloth, felt or analogous material may be used for preparing the upper, while the sole portion may be formed of soft leather, cloth,v

felt or the usual soft, commercial slippers sole sold for home use.

With the desired material at hand, the pattern A is placed upon a piece thereof, for instance a piece of soft leather may be selected to form the finished side ofan upper, and the outline of the pattern traced thereon. A similar tracing is alsomade on another piece of material, such for example as a piece of cotton cloth adapted for use as a lining for the upper. lhe material is now out out around the outlines of the pattern, and the two blanks thus formed are laid one on theother' in register and stitched together around the ankle opening, as shown in Fig. 2. The stitching may be done by the use of an ordinary sewing machine or by hand, and does not re uire the use of a shoe stitching machine. '1 e next step is to form a finished seam around the ankle opening, which is done by passing one of the blanks through the opening in the other blank, ass shown in Fig. 3, and then bringing the two blanks a ain into contact. This will leave the raw ges of the seamconcealed between the two blanks, see Fig. 5, and a neat, finished edge around the ankle opening is produced. It should be noted here that when a piece of leather is used to form the outer side of an upper, the leather is laid upon the cloth or Fig. 2, represent respectively a leather blank adapted to form the outside of an upper, and a cloth. or other blank suitable for a lining, both of which have been cut from the pattern A. The stitching around the ankle opening C is represented at b. The blanks B B are shown partly turned in Fig. 3 to form the finished seam c. The upper is now complete and ready for attachment to a suitable sole member. As shown in Fig. 6,

the attached blanks B B forming the upper,

are preferably drawn over a last or form D with the leather blank B next to the last, and the free edges 6 of the upper are se-' cured adjacent the bottom edge of the last to a sole member E, formed of soft leather, cloth, felt or the like, by stitching e through masses the contacting of the upper and sole member. By using a last as explained, the ankle opening may be accurately positioned so that thesole will be attached in correct relative position to the upper and ankle avoided. The last D is now removed through the ankle opening C and the shoe turned by passing the sole E through the ankle opening C, thus forming a concealed seam E, Fig. 7. When two blanks of like material, such as leather or felt are used for the upper, it is immaterial which blank is placed in contact' with the last when securing the sole and uppertogether. If preferred, the last D may be dispensed with, and the edges of the upper and sole E merely brought together and stitched.

If desired, a relatively stifi sole F, see Fig. 8, may be usedfin which case the edge of the upper is left exposed when attaching it to the sole, as it is not practical to turn the shoe when provided with the stiif sole F- It may be found desirable to utilize relatively small waste pieces of leather or other material in the making of shoes of the sort blanks G G respectively, which are marked by means of the pattern A, as before. The subsequent steps in preparing shoes or slippers from the blanks G G are the same as described in the case of the one-piece inner and outer blanks before mentioned;

The method of making shoes or thelike, as above outlined, enables such articles to be readily produced by persons without skill in the shoe making art, and persons in the home may, at little expense, make shoes or slippers from time to time as required, simply by providing themselves with a pattern of the proper size and some pieces of waste or scrap material of suitable sort.

In manufacturing establishments however, where large quantities of shoes could be produced, the pattern may be dispensed with and the blanks stamped out in quantity by the use of dies or the like, after which the shoes could be made up by unskilled persons.

I claim as my invention: 1. A method of making shoes or the like which consists in using two pieces of mathe ankle opening between these contacting faces, and securing the free edges of said blanks to a sole member.

2. A method of making shoes or the like which consists in using two pieces of ma-' terial out while flat into blanks having a predetermined outline and each blank having a, hole therein, securing said blanks by stitching together around said holes to form an ankle opening, concealing the seam thus formed by passing one of said blanks through the hole in the other blank, and securing the free edges of said blanks to a sole member.

15 3 A method of making shoes or the like which consists in using two pieces of material cut while flat into blanks having a predetermined outline and each blank having an aperture, securing said blanks by stitching together around said apertures to form an ankle opening, turning said blanks so as to conceal the seam around the ankle opening between the contacting surfaces of said blanks, securing the free edges of said blanks to a sole member by stitching said edges and the edges of said sole member together, and turning said secured blanks and sole member so as to form a concealed seam therebetween.

FRANK LUPPINO. 

